Fusion energy has been “20 years away” for decades, but has the science finally caught up? Private investment in fusion companies surged from $10 billion to $15 billion in just months, and the money is coming from places you wouldn’t expect.

On this episode of TechCrunch’s Equity podcast, Rebecca Bellan and guest host Tim De Chant sit down with Rachel Slaybaugh, general partner at DCVC, to break down why serious investors are finally treating fusion as a real asset class, and what the return thesis actually looks like when no one expects a power plant in their fund lifetime.

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Chapters:

00:00 Intro & fusion fest check-in

01:52 Why fusion, why now?

05:04 Federal funding history

06:17 The IEA’s 2030 milestone

07:37 What’s actually new: AI & superconducting magnets

09:19 Near-term revenue vs. staying the course

12:03 The return thesis: betting on “fusion euphoria”

19:33 Portfolio strategy: betting on the whole stack

21:16 How much energy do we actually need?

25:39 Data centers & the regulatory window

29:06 Fusion vs. fission explained

30:15 Going public: SPACs & Trump Media

32:08 Outro

If exoflops get you excited, catch up on #GoogleCloudNext’s reveal of the two new TPU 8t and TPU 8i chips 👀

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